ARTICLES

An Italian (well--Tuscan, really) dish I quickly learned to love during my hot summers there is panzanella. It makes use of stale bread and staples of Italian cooking: olive oil, tomatoes and fresh basil. Purists contend that the only other ingredients should be a dash of red wine vinegar, some onions, and salt.

Today I had planned a cute little post with a recipe for panzanella, but I’m not going to do that. With horrific events piling up left and right - Orlando, Dallas, Turkey, Nice - I can’t proceed with business as usual.

When I was general manager of a large performing arts festival in Italy, I spent a great deal of time before the trip talking to everyone about their money. Nothing can bring your trip to a grinding halt faster than losing your cash flow.

One of the questions I’m asked often is about safety and theft. Is it safe in Italy? Will I get robbed?

As of January 2016, the entry and exit requirements for all countries within the Schengen area have changed. Previously, your passport only needed to be valid for 3 months beyond your exit date from the Schengen area (or in most cases, the date of your return flight). Now, it is 6 months. If you're planning to travel to Europe soon, it's important that you (1) check your passport's expiration date and (2) get it renewed if it expires less than 6 months beyond the date you are EXITING the Schengen area (not entering it).

Back in my carefree twenties, before I had children and when my job entailed extensive travel, I always had terrible jet lag. Almost a week would pass before I could get out of bed before 10 am without feeling like I might die. That changed after we had kids.

I don’t know about you, but if I’m presented with - say - a filet mignon or a Holtman’s red velvet donut, I don’t cram the whole thing in my mouth and choke it down with some water. Nor do I eat as many of them as I can in one sitting. No, no, noooooooo. Neither of…

I am organized to the teeth when I travel - the polar opposite of my bon-vivant, Serbian husband. It all works out in the end, though. I keep us from dying or spending time needlessly wandering around, and he makes us live in the moment and meet new people.

The first time I went to Italy, I was a young musician participating in an opera and classical music festival sponsored by University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. Since this was a program run by Americans and attended by mostly Americans, we were in a…